angela hormberg

Tag: Psalm 8

  • Psalm 29

    Psalm 29

    Commonplace –

    “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the Lord is upon many waters” (Psalm 29:3).

    Psalm 29 is a meditation on God’s might and glory as it is exhibited through natural weather events. In it, David draws us back to the beginning, when the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. David stresses in verse 3 that God is upon many waters; God is present in this very moment just like He was at the beginning of the world. We are able to readily observe this through changes in the weather.

    David repeatedly stresses “the voice of the Lord” throughout Psalm 29 (v. 3, 5, 7, 8 and 9). He is using His voice to make things happen:

    1. break the cedars (v.5),
    2. cause the cedars to skip like a calf, like a young unicorn (v.6),
    3. dividing the flames of fire (v.7),
    4. shaking the wilderness (v.8),
    5. making the cows give birth (v.9),
    6. discovering the forest (v.9).

    One cannot help thinking of God’s voice as the wind, which comes to us in many forms: soft and gentle, loud and aggressive. Again, we are reminded of the old testament, when God spoke to Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11-12. First, God sent a great and strong wind that broke apart the rocks of the mountain. Then, God sent an earthquake. Next, God sent a fire. Finally, God came to Elijah in a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:13). How often in life do we walk around seemingly in control only to be confronted with our frail humanity by some incredible weather event, which exposes how little control we actually possess.

    Matthew Henry provides some worthwhile insight into Psalm 29.

    “It is the probable conjecture of some very good interpreters that David penned this psalm upon occasion, and just at the time, of a great storm of thunder, lightning, and rain, as the eighth psalm was his meditation in a moon-light night and the nineteenth in a sunny morning” (274).

    David, too, was reminded of the power of God through the medium of the weather.

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 29.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg

  • Psalm 8

    Psalm 8

    Commonplace –

    “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of mine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger” (Psalm 8:2).

    and

    “What is man, that thou are mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?” (Psalm 8:4).

    “O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens” (Psalm 8:1 and 9).

    David begins and ends this contemplative psalm with the same verse, praising God for his excellent name and His glory. In Psalm 8, David marvels over God’s kindness towards man:

    1. Even the children of men are recognized and loved by God, speaking God’s word in strength, stilling the enemy (v.2.).
    2. Even man, himself, is loved by God, placed a little lower than angels and above all creation.

    Why is God’s kindness so amazing? Because God as Creator does not have to love His creation, yet He does. Throughout the psalm, David recognizes God as Creator of all things: the heavens, the moon, the stars, beasts of the field, fowl of the air, fish and everything else in and of the sea. And God, Creator of all things, is mindful of everything He created. Note David’s emphasis on God’s recognition of children. Children were not prized, as they are often not prized today, but God takes notice of them and gives strength to children through his Word. Probably God’s recognition of His Creation is more of a marvel to David, who as King of Israel was aware of how difficult it is to keep an eye on his kingdom. It’s impossible for an earthly king to be attune to all the goings on of His Kingdom, yet God is mindful of the entire world and everything in it.

    But we can be mindful of the One, who is mindful of all things. We can acknowledge how excellent He is. And that is what Matthew Henry points us to in his summary.

    “This psalm is a solemn meditation on, and admiration of, the glory and greatness of God, of which we are all concerned to think highly and honourably” (216).

    and

    “When we are observing the glory of God in the kingdom of nature and providence we should be led by that, and through that, to the contemplation of his glory in the kingdom of grace” (216).

    This psalm is an excellent example of how to meditate on God’s word, thinking about an aspect of God and considering it.

    Works Cited

    Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 8.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3 and Volume 6, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.

    Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.

    © 2025 Angela Hormberg